Vegas Wedding

[DJDB]

My fiance and I are considering getting married in Vegas in May of this year. I've never even been there, and definitely never been married there, so I would really appreciate it if anyone who was married there could give me an idea of where you got married, approximate cost, ease of renting dress/chapel, how happy you were with the whole experience, etc. Any info would be great. It will only be the two of us, so we want something low key but not cheesy. We're both in our early 40's.

Tell me about your Vegas wedding experiences, please!!!

[Wylie's Mom]

We didn't get married in Vegas, but almost did - I think it sounds like so much fun . Also, so many great places to eat (awesome chefs), shows, etc...so what a fun celebration.

What about buying an evening dress ahead of time, and taking it with you? Me and my hubs got married on the side of a mountain, with our dog Wylie as our best man and maid of honor -- so I wanted something kinda simple. I think it was Lord and Taylor, or Daytons or something -- I found a pretty, white, sheath-y dress, with layers on the bottom. It was in the evening dress section - and it was just what I wanted.

Or, even buy a black evening gown that you could wear again. And throw a white faux-fur bolero over it

CONGRATS! I wanna hear about it after!

[gidget529]

I would highly recommend the Bellagio. Prime is a restaurant there that has steak and seafood. A table by the windows over the fountains are wonderful for your wedding "reception". If you arrange ahead of time and tell them it is your wedding night, they will make sure you will have a special eve w them. We got married at a chapel and wish we would have gotten married in the Bellagio where we stayed.

[gidget529]

Originally Posted by Wylie's Mom

We didn't get married in Vegas, but almost did - I think it sounds like so much fun . Also, so many great places to eat (awesome chefs), shows, etc...so what a fun celebration.

What about buying an evening dress ahead of time, and taking it with you? Me and my hubs got married on the side of a mountain, with our dog Wylie as our best man and maid of honor -- so I wanted something kinda simple. I think it was Lord and Taylor, or Daytons or something -- I found a pretty, white, sheath-y dress, with layers on the bottom. It was in the evening dress section - and it was just what I wanted.

Or, even buy a black evening gown that you could wear again. And throw a white faux-fur bolero over it

CONGRATS! I wanna hear about it after!

That sounds beautiful on the side of a mountain!

[SophieKatesMom]

I second Bellagio, love it.

Also the idea of buying a dress and taking it is GREAT, I have been to Las Vegas many times and it seems everytime I go there is a bridal party on the plane and the Bride is transporting a dress. The Flight Attendants are usually very nice and hang the dress of the Bride.

Good luck

[DJDB]

Thanks. I think the Bellagio is a bit out of our price range. We will be staying at the Monte Carlo. I looked online and it seems they also perform ceremonies, starting at $250. I like the idea of buying a dress here and taking it down. I asked one place for a price on renting a dress and it was $350!! I can buy my own new wedding gown for $700 in my own town, so that seems kind of steep.

I hope others share their wedding stories!

[My Sophia]

your hotel is going to be your best resource. also google las vegas wedding chapels and you can contact them directly. most have planners and packages you can select from. let them do all the work, all you have to do is show up. Congratulations!!

[Carol607]

My hubby and I got married on a gondola in the Venetian Hotel about 10 years ago. We had been together for many years and it was low key-just us two and two friends who live near Vegas. Had an awesome time-so romantic. I didn't wear a wedding dress-just a pretty new dress I could wear again. And I got my hair done in a updo. It was very reasonably priced at the time. My husband still talks about it.

[Wylie's Mom]

Originally Posted by Carol607

My hubby and I got married on a gondola in the Venetian Hotel about 10 years ago. We had been together for many years and it was low key-just us two and two friends who live near Vegas. Had an awesome time-so romantic. I didn't wear a wedding dress-just a pretty new dress I could wear again. And I got my hair done in a updo. It was very reasonably priced at the time. My husband still talks about it.

Me and hubs stayed at the Venetian a few years back, we loved it. Our room was gorgeous.

Hubby has gone to LV more than me and he also likes The Hotel.

Like others have said, the Bellagio is beautiful - it's worth staying just to see the glass Chihuly! So amazing.

[celstu1]

I think all the hotels have wedding packages that you can customize. My little brother got married there at the Venetian also. Not in the gondolas though. They did do gondola rides later though. It was lovely but it cost them about $3000 to get the ceremony, flowers, hair & makeup, photographer, cake and a couple other small things. They bought their attire before going so that was separate also. I am getting married in New Hampshire in March and its costing us roughly $15,000 (and thats on the off-season 'cheap side'!!) I wish I could have gotten my fiance to do Vegas, that would have been AWESOME!

You can get bridal gowns at Davids bridal brand new for about $200 if you really want to wear a gown. I think Davids is pretty national. They have gowns that convert now too, you button on the gown part for the ceremony and unbutton and take it off and make your dress a shorter dress for the reception or post ceremony bash!

[gidget529]

Originally Posted by DJDB

Thanks. I think the Bellagio is a bit out of our price range. We will be staying at the Monte Carlo. I looked online and it seems they also perform ceremonies, starting at $250. I like the idea of buying a dress here and taking it down. I asked one place for a price on renting a dress and it was $350!! I can buy my own new wedding gown for $700 in my own town, so that seems kind of steep.

I hope others share their wedding stories!

You might be much happier going through the Monte Carlo for your ceremony. We were really disappointed w the wedding chapel we used. We have relatives who recently got married at a different chapel in Vegas, and they also were disappointed w theirs. However, everyone I hear from who got married in a hotel there was very happy.

[DvlshAngel985]

I helped a friend plan for a last minute, courthouse wedding. Definitely not Vegas, but we did shop for a pretty little dress.

She found a white, strapless, short dress at the mall. It only costs her $30, and my mom gifted her $12 worth of alterations. The dress itself was cute, but not very bridal until we put on the finishing touches. I learned to do her hair from a YouTube video, added a few accents here and there, and voila! A bride was made.

You have a lot more time, and can plan ahead. Shop for Big ticket items like the dress ahead of time, and you can find a beautiful dress ahead of time for not a lot of money. Don't be afraid to buy a beautiful dress that's on sale if it's too big. THE dress started out 2 sizes too large, but it was the perfect style and length that my friend wanted. In the end the dress fit like a glove after it was altered. I'm helping another friend plan a small simple wedding. Another non Vegas wedding, but at least this time we will have more than 2 weeks to find a perfect affordable dress.

[DJDB]

Thanks so much everyone for the awesome advice! I'm so excited. I think the Vegas wedding is a perfect idea. I like the hotel ceremony option better than a chapel. I think the hotel you stay at will really work with you to make it a fabulous experience. I'll check out the Venetian.

I am definitely going to do a lot of looking around at dresses in the next few months. There are consignment wedding shops close by, and we are also going down to the Seattle Premium Outlet mall in a couple of weeks, so I'll be looking there to see if I can find a good deal. I'm a larger size, so it might be a bit tougher to find a deal, but with a few months I think I have enough time.

I can't even imagine spending $15k on a wedding. I don't think my b/f would have asked me to get married if he thought we'd spend that much. We just bought a new house, so that kind of wedding budget is not gonna happen.

[DJDB]

Originally Posted by Carol607

My hubby and I got married on a gondola in the Venetian Hotel about 10 years ago. We had been together for many years and it was low key-just us two and two friends who live near Vegas. Had an awesome time-so romantic. I didn't wear a wedding dress-just a pretty new dress I could wear again. And I got my hair done in a updo. It was very reasonably priced at the time. My husband still talks about it.

I bet that was lovely! I definitely want to get my hair done up nice. You know it's good when the man is happy with it!

[celstu1]

Originally Posted by DJDB

Thanks so much everyone for the awesome advice! I'm so excited. I think the Vegas wedding is a perfect idea. I like the hotel ceremony option better than a chapel. I think the hotel you stay at will really work with you to make it a fabulous experience. I'll check out the Venetian.

I am definitely going to do a lot of looking around at dresses in the next few months. There are consignment wedding shops close by, and we are also going down to the Seattle Premium Outlet mall in a couple of weeks, so I'll be looking there to see if I can find a good deal. I'm a larger size, so it might be a bit tougher to find a deal, but with a few months I think I have enough time.

I can't even imagine spending $15k on a wedding. I don't think my b/f would have asked me to get married if he thought we'd spend that much. We just bought a new house, so that kind of wedding budget is not gonna happen.

Girl, I really wish we did the Vegas thing! I mean I'm sure it's going to be beautiful .... but it's kind of expensive! not the most expensive ever, but we had to cut corners, cut the guest list and make it off-season (in NH Nov - March are considered off-season) to do it for $15K and that does not include the rings, we are over $20K with everything! UUGGHHH

Although, we both own our houses for over 5 years now, and we are not planning on having kids, he has 2 kids who are older so child support payments are almost over. There were a lot of factors involved with making a decision on what to do. My grandparents love it and they are getting old and my grandmother has Alzheimers, so we wanted to give her a kind of last hurrah.
I love the Vegas idea but if I were you I'd find a gown, second-hand, ebay, craigs list, consignment shop, but do yourself up... you only get to do this once in your life (you hope!) so make sure you look and feel like a bride on your wedding day!